Broncos (2-2) at Eagles (4-0)
When: 11 a.m. Sunday
Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pa.
TV/radio: CBS, 850 AM/94.1 FM
Broncos-Eagles series: Denver’s only won once in seven tries at Lincoln Financial Field, as the Broncos face an incredibly tough test on Sunday. The Broncos are 5-9 all-time in 14 matchups against the Eagles, last dropping a game 30-13 in November 2021, when now-Eagles DC Vic Fangio was the head coach.
In the spotlight: Bo Nix faces Vic Fangio defense in massive early test
If you ask Vic Fangio, the Broncos’ second-year quarterback is a heck of a lot like the one the Eagles just played: Baker Mayfield.
“I think he might be Baker’s younger brother,” Fangio, now the Eagles’ defensive coordinator, said Monday. “Really good. Really, really good.”
It’s a fairly apt comparison. Mayfield, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ fiery 30-year-old Pro Bowler, stands 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds. Bo Nix, the Broncos’ fiery 25-year-old QB, stands 6-foot-2 and 217 pounds. Both fall somewhere in the vague realm between on-time game manager and creative shot-taker.
It’s unclear if such a comparison will end up being a compliment, though, after the Eagles just held Mayfield to a 55.0 completion percentage and an 84.3 quarterback rating in a Philadelphia win last Sunday.
“He’s a scrambler,” Fangio said of Nix. “He’s a competitor. He’ll throw the ball in tight places. He runs their offense really well. I think Sean’s done a great job bringing him along. And they got their quarterback for the future.
“They looked long and hard for many years, and they’ve got one.”
Fangio, of course, knows as well as anyone. In Fangio’s three years as the Broncos’ head coach from 2019-2021, Denver cycled through six starting quarterbacks. Those were the days of a not-yet-reborn Joe Flacco, and the weirdness of Drew Lock, Brandon Allen and Jeff Driskel. Payton found his offensive leader in the first round in 2024, after Fangio found the Broncos’ current defensive leader, Pat Surtain II, in the first round in 2021.
Now, after an inconclusive four-game start to 2025, Nix steps into one of the most important moments of his early Broncos career. Head-to-head with the Super Bowl champions. Head-to-head with a Fangio defense that tormented Patrick Mahomes himself last February. Head-to-head with 65,000-plus roaring Philadelphians.
Here’s the thing: The Eagles’ defense has looked considerably more vulnerable through four games this season, despite a 4-0 start. They stiffen in the red zone — tied for the fewest red-zone TDs allowed (4) of any NFL team thus far — when the field tightens and their playmakers shine. Inside linebacker Zack Baun has been worth every penny of a $51 million March extension, racking up nine pressures as a blitzer and allowing just 73 yards on 16 targets in coverage. Quinyon Mitchell is rounding into one of the best young cornerbacks in the game not named Pat Surtain II, surrendering a 44% catch rate early in 2025.
When the field lengths, though, the Eagles are vulnerable. Philadelphia’s allowed the second-most average yards on deep balls thus far this season, according to Next Gen Stats. And they haven’t been able to consistently pressure quarterbacks on such looks: Fangio’s defense sits in the middle of the league in pressure rate, and near the bottom of the league in total sacks.
“I don’t think our rush has been bad,” Fangio said Monday. “The ball’s been coming out pretty quick at times. I haven’t felt an epidemic during the games, when I’m calling them, that our rush isn’t good enough.”
Nix ripped a 28-yard shot to Marvin Mims Jr. against the Bengals in Week 4, one of his most impressive throws of the year. Still, his deep-ball accuracy has been an early talking point. If Payton’s play-calling opens up opportunities against Philadelphia, Nix can’t afford to miss them.
“It’s going to be a challenge to find explosive plays, but at the same time, it’s not getting bored, continuing to do the same stuff over and over throughout the game,” Nix said Thursday. “When it’s there, you also have to be able to hit it. They’ll give us our opportunities; we’ve got to hit it. But at the same time, we’re going to have to work for them.”
Who has the edge?
When Broncos run: Sean Payton unlocked a two-back effectiveness against the Bengals that he’d never quite found in his two previous seasons in Denver, and the Broncos’ ground attack is suddenly rolling. They’re fifth in the NFL in average rushing yards per game. Veteran back J.K. Dobbins has answered the bell at every call, and rookie RJ Harvey added 58 yards on 14 carries Monday night. The Eagles defense has allowed the seventh-highest yards per carry in the league thus far, but this area gets interesting if linebacker Nakobe Dean (128 tackles last year) is healthy again Sunday. Slight edge: Broncos
When Broncos pass: Vic Fangio made the joke this week that every rookie you start equates to one loss. The Eagles, though, are rolling with second-round pick Andrew Mukuba at safety. He’s largely been solid to start his NFL career, but he got torched for a 77-yard touchdown last week. Philadelphia has solid cornerback play in Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean, but sits right in the middle of the league in pass defense thus far. Edge: Even
When Eagles run: The follow-up to a league-altering Super Bowl rushing attack has been … fine. All-world back Saquon Barkley has averaged 3.1 yards a carry thus far, and is going for just 2.5 a pop on between-the-tackles runs. But the Eagles have still run for seven touchdowns on the ground, and the Jalen Hurts Tush Push remains as lethal as ever. Edge: Eagles
When Eagles pass: You’re in a tough early-season spot when your WR1 is quoting scripture about not being “welcomed” after catching two balls on nine targets. A.J. Brown has been fully neutralized in all but one of the Eagles’ four contests this season, currently averaging fewer than 40 yards a game. Hurts has been remarkably efficient as a thrower, but the Broncos just shut down arguably the best receiving tandem in the league last week in the Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Edge: Broncos
Special teams: Fangio went on a diatribe this week about how the NFL’s new kicking rules — teams being allowed unlimited time to break in balls — have “drastically changed” field goals around the league. Eagles kicker Jake Elliott probably won’t complain, though, as he’s 3 of 3 on kicks longer than 50 yards this year. Philadelphia, meanwhile, has blocked three combined field goals or punts in just the last two games. This could be a bloodbath. Edge: Eagles
Coaching: Sean Payton’s play-calling popped in Week 4 against the Bengals, and the shift to full series for Dobbins and Harvey showed clear self-evaluation. Vance Joseph’s defense, meanwhile, was allergic to letting the Bengals across midfield for most of the game. For all the combined years of experience there, though, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni is currently piloting a football team that is 20-1 in its last 21 games and has overachieved in 2025 relative to yardage ranks. Edge: Eagles
Tale of the tape
Broncos Eagles Total offense 354.5 (9th) 251.5 (30th) Rush offense 143.3 (5th) 113.5 (16th) Pass offense 211.3 (16th) 138.0 (31st) Points per game 24.0 (T-16th) 27.0 (7th) Total defense 285.3 (10th) 333.3 (22nd) Run defense 99.3 (11th) 126.0 (21st) Pass defense 186.0 (T-9th) 207.3 (T-17th) Points allowed 16.8 (T-2nd) 22.0 (T-15th)
By the numbers
217: Passing attempts since Jalen Hurts last threw an interception.
3.5: Eagles running back Saquon Barkley’s average yards-per-carry in 2025 when facing a light box (less than seven defenders).
92.3%: Philadelphia tight end Dallas Goedert’s catch rate in 2025.
50%: A.J. Brown’s catch rate in 2025.
40.9%: Eagles’ pressure rate against Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers last Sunday, their highest since the start of 2024.
158.3: Bo Nix’s quarterback rating when pressured by the Bengals on Monday night.
X-factors
Broncos: DL Zach Allen. Denver needs its interior defensive linemen to step up massively against the Eagles’ ground game, and Allen has yet to record a true breakout game in 2025 despite doing the dirty work for edges Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper to shine. Philadelphia guard Landon Dickerson has allowed 13 pressures in four games this year. There’s an opportunity for Allen to do some damage.
Eagles: LB Nakobe Dean. The Eagles opened Dean’s practice window to return from the PUP list after a torn patellar tendon in last year’s playoffs, and his presence could massively shift Sunday’s outcome. If Dean’s healthy, Philadelphia could stick him next to rookie Jihaad Campbell at ILB and shift Baun to the edge to try to generate more pressure on Nix.
Post predictions
Parker Gabriel, beat writer: Eagles 26, Broncos 23
The Eagles haven’t really hit their stride yet this season and yet are 4-0. The Broncos haven’t really hit their stride yet — though perhaps Monday night was the start — and are 2-2, with a pair of brutal road losses. Those games matter Sunday in this context: Sean Payton’s team hasn’t learned to close away from home yet. Philly, on the other hand, has won 20 of the past 21 games it’s played over the past calendar year-plus. That and special teams could be the difference.
Luca Evans, beat writer: Broncos 24, Eagles 21
Let’s get a little crazy. Philadelphia has way overachieved its underlying offensive and defensive numbers this year, winning games with fantastic special-teams and red-zone play. The Broncos have one of the best red-zone defenses in the league, and their run game is rolling. Darren Rizzi’s special teams will face its test of the season, but if they play a clean game and don’t spring themselves off any linemen, the Broncos have a real shot here.
Troy Renck, columnist: Eagles 24, Broncos 20
This screams upset … if Denver were at home. The Eagles are vulnerable. Their wings are clipped in the passing game. They have an A.J. Brown problem. They had zero yards through the air in the second half last week. The Broncos could run the ball, take care of the ball, and shock the Eagles. But not in Philadelphia. The Eagles have won 11 straight home games, and haven’t lost there in 13 months. A special teams play will prove the difference.
Sean Keeler, columnist: Eagles 24, Broncos 21
With apologies to the great Reggie Jackson, Sean Payton is the new Mr. October. Since 2016, the Broncos head coach sports a 13-2 record, straight-up, in October road games. Like Tampa and the Meadowlands last year, nobody outside the Front Range gives the orange and blue much of a chance. Bo Nix and the Broncos found something on Monday night. Unfortunately, I think what they mostly found is that the Bengals stink.